The present invention relates to radiation shielding devices and more particularly to a flexible stranded curtain of radiation-inhibiting material for use with radiological and fluoroscopic equipment.
The radiation levels to which busy radiologists are exposed during fluoroscopy may frequently exceed the maximum permissible dose of 5 rads per year for radiation workers as defined by the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurement. While particular shielding devices, such as the lead apron worn during fluoroscopy, can reduce the actual dose to the body trunk and thighs to acceptable levels, other body organs particularly sensitive to radiation, such as the lens of the eye, are generally unshielded. During fluoroscopy a large portion of the scattered radiation to which the fluoroscopist is exposed is scattered from the patient and exits through the space between the fluoroscopic table top and the bottom of the image intensifier carriage. Although it has been recommended that for good practice flaps of 0.25 mm lead equivalence should be utilized on fluoroscopic equipment to close this space, and some fluoroscopic tables are equipped with collapsible or folding barriers, still the commercially available fluoroflaps and collapsible barriers tend to impede the fluoroscopist's activities. In addition, the problem may be complicated in certain applications by the need to maintain a sterile field in which instances conventional lead rubber or vinyl fluoroflaps are totally unsuitable.
The present invention accordingly provides a radiation shielding means which offers a minimum of obstruction to the radiologist, which is much more durable than the prior art devices and which can be readily sterilized for use during special procedures.